


That's Not a Nursery Rhyme

by quidamling



Category: Transformers (Bay Movies), Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Cybertron, F/M, Family, Gen, Lil kid drama, Other, Soldier daddy stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-05
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:20:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25079011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quidamling/pseuds/quidamling
Summary: Lennox loves his little girl and would do absolutely anything for her.  He is a father, a Ranger and a competent adult that has plenty of options in his toolbox.  But sometimes even he runs out of ideas...
Relationships: Ironhide/Sarah Lennox/William Lennox, Sarah Lennox/William Lennox
Comments: 9
Kudos: 40





	That's Not a Nursery Rhyme

**Author's Note:**

> I wander through the Bay-verse canon like a picky bitch at a buffet, and only choose the bits I like. I really like Ironhide and the Lennox fam. Set some time post-2007 movie, maybe up to DotM.

Annabelle tugged on her ear.

That was what started it, Will sighed. One little pout from his baby girl as she pulled on her earlobe, and now here he was. And this was just where they always wanted him…

~*~

“Sarah, hun? Anna been having trouble with her ears?” Will asked softly from where he was laying on the couch with their daughter curled up on his chest. 

His wife peeked up from her laptop, ensconced in the big armchair across the room. “Don’t think so,” Sarah replied, tipping her head and then tucking the blond waves behind her ear when her hair slipped over her face. “It’s nearly bedtime, she could just be tired.”

Will frowned and peered at Annabelle. The little girl had her lower lip stuck out and kept scratching at her cheek right by her ear. “Iunno, she looks pretty miserable,” he said.

Sarah stood up and went to sit on the floor by her husband’s shoulder. “Hey, baby,” she crooned to Annabelle, “You feeling icky, or just tormenting daddy into being a worry wart?” 

Anna turned big glossy blue eyes from Will’s face to her mother’s, but being an 11-month-old, she did not reply. She did, however, yawn and then squirm more beneath Daddy’s hand. 

“I am _not_ a…” Will began, and then deflated at Sarah’s simple arch of an eyebrow. He sighed and wrapped his free arm around his wife when she leaned her chin on his shoulder and nuzzled the baby.

“Uh huh, oh yes you are, Ranger,” Sarah purred. “And your ladies have you wrapped around their little fingers, anyway,” she slipped her finger into Annabelle’s palm and kissed her little fist. “No matter how bitty those fingers are, right sweetie?”

“Mmmhmmm,” Will drawled. He looked from Sarah and back to the baby. Anna kept setting her head down on his collar bone, then popping back up to pout at him. “Fine, so you’re sure she’s ok?”

Humming softly, Sarah rose up on her knees to kiss her daughter’s forehead. She plopped back on her heels and considered. “Don’t think she’s warm, but we can keep an eye on her tonight, ok?” For a moment she looked at Will’s worried brown eyes, and then she carded her fingers through his short hair.

He took the reassurance offered, pressing his head into her palm.

“Come on, let’s get her to bed,” Sarah coaxed, waiting for Will to readjust the baby and sit up. 

Will pushed up from the couch and they went through their nightly ritual, giving Annabelle a little spongedown, getting her changed and cozy, and down in her crib. He and his Lady had a few hours of quality alone time, and then got to sleep themselves.

~*~

“Lennox,” Ironhide’s voice cut through the baby monitor, causing Sarah and Will to jump, both literally and from sleep to wakefulness. Damned if that mech couldn’t hack anything to his own whims. When the microwave spoke, it would be the last straw… “You should see to your offspring.”

“Huh?” Will muttered groggily, rolling from curled around Sarah to flopped on his back.

Annabelle’s wail crackled through the speaker on their nightstand.

Sarah gasped and they both disentangled from the sheets and leapt from the bed. “Oh no…”

Will stumbled on his shoes at the foot of the bed, so his wife made it to the crib first. Annabelle was sitting up and crying at the top of her lungs. “She ok?” he asked, petting the back of the baby’s head as Sarah scooped her up into her arms.

“Shh… it’s ok, baby, we’re here…” Sarah crooned, kissing Anna’s forehead. “She feels warm. Will, can you get the thermometer from the bathroom.”

He grunted agreement and ducked back out of the room. As he passed back by their bedroom Will threw an undershirt on, at least he had pajama pants and something if they needed to head to the doctor. Returning with the thermometer he let Sarah wrangle Annabelle’s head as he got the temperature from the baby’s ear, that little exercise just made her scream more. He took a deep breath as he read it off, “One oh-two, sweetie.” 

Lennox was worried, but that was definitely not panic making his voice warble. Rangers do not panic. Not even about their sick little girls. Nope.

Sarah considered, chewing on her lip, her husband had to strain to hear her over the baby’s cries. “Alright, well, there’s no one we can call now about giving her something for her fever.”

“Then what?” Will asked, wrapping both of them to his chest and gently guiding down Anna’s hand when she clawed at her already bright red ear. 

Not that he looked like a lost puppy, but Sarah could not help reaching up to run her hand down her husband’s neck. “Then it looks like we get to watch some late-night TV in the ER waiting room.”

Will nodded, more comfortable that he had a battle plan. “Ok, lemme take her, and you can get some more on,” he smirked briefly at her little sleep shorts and tank. “Just grab my sweatshirt?”

“Mmmhmm,” Sarah replied, maneuvering the fussy baby to Will and scurrying to get on some clothes for the public. 

Getting a baby out the door was more work than getting his squad airborne… Lennox would swear it. He grabbed a washcloth, Annabelle was a sloppy mess with how hard she was crying, hoisted the diaper bag onto his shoulder and slipped his flip flops on by the door.

As Lennox crossed the porch, Ironhide sitting in the driveway in his TopKick mode flickered his running lights. “Sorry to wake you, what’s her status, Lennox?” the mech’s distinctive rumble rolled from the pickup.

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. Thanks. She’s… got a fever, maybe a cold or flu bug or something,” Will paused to hum and whisper soothing tones to his little girl before looking back up at the truck. “You up for a run to the hospital?”

“She has an inflammatory response occurring in her middle ears,” Ironhide murmured, despite his best efforts his tone betrayed his concern for his youngest charge. “Is that a life-threatening condition?”

Oh. Will blinked a few times, suddenly remembering the scanners that Ironhide always had trained on them. “Ears… well, that would explain… but no. It’s more the fever’s a little worrying. Since we can’t run giving something to bring the fever down past a professional, better stay on the safe side.”

Sarah came out of the house at that moment. She held up a sweatshirt and considered which cargo to relieve her husband of before she took the diaper bag from Will’s shoulder. “We ready?” she asked, looking between her boys. 

Ironhide’s engine revved up from his low idle to an active growl of mechanics. “Yes, I’ll get you there as fast as possible.”

“Easy, ‘Hide,” Sarah soothed, amused despite the stress of her screaming unhappy daughter. She climbed into the cab when Ironhide popped the door for her. “I trust a Cybertronian with keeping my baby safe, but the good ol’ USA demands a car seat. You attract enough attention and we need to pull out the baby seat again.”

The truck seemed to visibly lower on its shocks. “Yes, ma’am.”

Will chuckled and nuzzled at Anna’s temple, managing to get her to subside to whimpers long enough to pass her to Sarah and settle himself in the driver’s seat. “If a male says something in the forest, and there is no woman to hear him, is he still wrong?” he quoted.

“Yes,” Sarah answered definitively from the awfully lush and cozy backseat area, trying to settle Anna enough to spare their ears and audios for the trip. “And we’re ready back here.”

“Ready when you are, Ironhide,” Will said, shrugging into his sweatshirt. Once he straightened himself out, he ran a thankful palm down the steering wheel and Ironhide was already pulling out into the road.

“ETA, seventeen minutes, Lennox,” Ironhide reported.

They were at the hospital in fourteen and change.

~*~

The hospital was much less painful than it could have been. Thankfully, there was not a big rush of patients coming in at 3:37AM on a Thursday morning. Also thankfully, the admitting staff were very willing to help out and speed the admission for the young family with a screaming child and the military insurance card. 

It was not too much of an eternity in the waiting room, and then a doctor was able to see Annabelle. She was given fluids and something to help bring down her fever before it got too worrisome. She indeed had ear infections, and her tubes were blocked, contributing to the fluid buildup and her discomfort. Despite it fraying the nerves of her parents, she was much quieter when the Doctor decided it was worth the small holes to allow her middle ears to start draining. 

As the baby was more comfortable, Sarah and Will were finally able to start relaxing, as well. Sarah curled up on the bed with Anna as the last of the IV and medicine worked, and Will lounged in the visitor’s chair fighting a crick in his neck. 

Lennox managed to doze off for a few hours in fits and starts. Training was delightful in that it kept him waking with each check from nursing, clatter of a cart going by, or little whimper from Anna. Finally, he woke to a nurse carrying discharge orders and signature pages. Will rubbed his eyes with a groan and forced focus on the blurry words. “Got the rest of the drugs?” he asked. The nurse gave a quiet smile and nodded, pointing to the little prescription bottle already in his hand. “Fuck…” Will growled, scrubbed his brow.

The nurse chuckled and gave the sleeping baby one last check before walking out.

“Sarah, love,” Will murmured, levering himself out of the chair and slipping the pills in the pocket of his sweatshirt. 

Sarah woke and stroked through Annabelle’s hair. “Ready to go home?” she asked, then frowned as their daughter stirred. They needed to lift her to leave.

“Yeah, let me,” Will whispered, lifting the baby and nestling her on his shoulder. Anna wriggled and made an unhappy sound, but a low rumbled hum helped. “You’ve got that client conference in the morning.”

“Oh no,” Sarah breathed, looking to her bare wrist on instinct, but then scanning the clock above the bed. “Ok, ok, I have a few hours to nap and try to look human.”

Will purred and leaned down around their daughter for a kiss. “You’re beautiful no matter what.”

“Right answer, Ranger,” Sarah mumbled, managing to brighten at Will’s laugh. She let him guide her back out to the parking lot and to their Guardian. 

Everyone fell asleep on the ride home. Ironhide barely had the spark to wake them once they arrived back at the ranch. 

~*~

Lennox had been on point throughout the day. Sarah had rebounded admirably and made a beautiful draft presentation to her current client. Lennox dared to drift by her office and lurk in the hallway while Annabelle was sleeping to listen in on her video conference. He heard lots of positive rumbles and compliments on her design style, Will was beyond proud of his Lady. 

By the time they had finished dinnertime he had only managed a little nap with Anna. The rest of the time she was just miserable and squirmy, refusing to settle. Sarah was the one most tied to a nine-to-five while Will was at home on leave, so she got a bit of rest before her afternoon tasks. That meant Will was rolling up on… math was hard… 17 hours awake. It was not the most terrible thing, but it still was not what he would prefer. 

At Anna’s regular bedtime, Sarah and Will went through the routine dragging. Once she was down, they both collapsed into bed as well. 

It did not last. Anna woke up unhappy at around 10pm. Sarah groaned and started to get out of bed.

“No, no…” Will slurred. “No… You’re… work. You’re work.” He nodded like he had said something wise.

Sarah snickered quietly. “I am work, honey. You sure?”

“Yeah, I got this.” Will leaned down to give her a kiss and all but purred when Sarah stroked through the hair at his nape. “Though you’re making it hard.”

“Good to know, love,” Sarah murmured and arched as she rolled over.

Will shook his head, mostly to clear it, and kissed Sarah’s shoulder before walking out to the nursery. Anna was sitting up and pouting, the wails still manageable. 

“Ok, baby girl,” Lennox whispered, reaching into the crib and lifting her clear. 

Annabelle whined and wriggled a bit as Daddy tried to get her nestled against his chest. 

“Come on, Anna, Anna-belly-jelly-bean….” Will crooned, starting to pace across the room. 

The baby made a low whimper. Will nicked the thermometer from where they had left it on the little dresser and checked her temperature. It was a little high, but Anna objected more to the intrusion than anything else. 

“Ok, ok… You’re ok,” Will apologized, bouncing lightly as he walked the short length of the room. Anna seemed to like when he was speaking, getting quieter and pressing her head to his chest. 

Eventually Will found himself chanting “Left, left, left right left…” as he paced. It was easiest to stick with what he knew. 

Annabelle approved, quieting to listen to him.

As riveting a left-right repeat was to a baby, Will got bored and shifted into going down other marching cadences he knew.

“Can’t tell momma about this, little lady, or she’ll have my testicles in a vice,” Will murmured, rubbing his cheek on soft little blond curls. 

“Ma-ma?” Annabelle parroted drowsily, fingers kneading against Daddy’s chest. 

Will chuckled and gently cupped her head against his throat; she nudged closer to his heartbeat and finally started settling. “Yeah, ‘ _momma_ ,’ baby girl. Just don’t repeat to momma anything else daddy rattles off to you in the night.” 

Some were inappropriate, some were way too raunchy. Finally, his brain settled on his own… “Airborne,” he breathed in a quiet singsong. Will toned it down to a fraction of the braying call, but still long and drawn out, warbling in time with his steps. He had to slow down his tempo from a march to the universal baby speed, but his body and mind got it. It felt a little odd to be his own call and response, but as it dragged out the length of his cadence, the baby started falling back to sleep.

Airborne

Rangers lead the way

_Lead in_

Airborne

Rangers lead the way

Deep in the battlefield covered in blood

Lies an Airborne Ranger dying in the mud

Airborne

Rangers lead the way

With those silver wings upon his chest

Tell America that he's one of their best

Airborne

Rangers lead the way

_Lead out_

Airborne

Rangers lead the way

Though Lennox worried about the specifics of the lyrics, he was pretty sure that Annabelle could not tattle about dying in his… lullaby. Fuck it, Rock a Bye Baby is about a damn cradle falling out of a tree… Who would tell?

The sky had begun brightening by the time Will felt secure enough to settle into the rocking chair with the baby nestled on his chest. He woke to the tap on his shoulder and blinked up at Sarah. She was all dressed and business ready.

“Good morning, Ranger,” Sarah breathed. Her lips quirked on ‘Ranger’ in a way that had Will’s pulse jump.

“Yes, ma’am?” Will asked. His brain was trying to decide if his heart was racing because of want or fear.

Sarah leaned down and stroked Will’s jaw. “Making up lullabies?”

“Uh,” Will stared. 

Ironhide’s amused rumble came through the baby monitor. “Seems so.”

Will jumped and glared in the general direction of the window. “I have no idea…”

The monitor crackled and replayed Will’s voice, ‘ _Range~e~e~e~er…. Silver wings upon his chest…_ ’

“At least you choose the better line… and can’t we get you a damn comm?” Will scrambled to shift the topic.

A low purr of laughter came from the mech. “We can arrange that.”

Sarah snickered. “But first, please stop talking about you dying out in the field in front of the baby while she can’t understand.” She ran her hands down her husband’s neck and chest, what has not taken up by the sleeping baby.

Will looked abashed. “It worked, though…”

“I know, love. And I’ve got you singing on tape thanks to Ironhide. Now just… choose better. Nursery rhymes. Got it?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

When Sarah leaned down, Will gratefully fell into her gentle kiss. She deftly stole their sleeping baby as she stood, leaving her husband looking baffled at her magic. “Come on, honey,” Sarah murmured as she turned and tossed her head for Will to follow her.

Will nodded, padding after her. The lack of sleep was a familiar enough haze, but any competency in that state still felt like a veneer. “Alright,” he said, puzzled about their path back to the Master Bedroom.

“We’re assigning contracts for the new editions today. I’m hoping for the Anatomy text…” Sarah settled Annabelle into the small bedside crib and turned back to Will with an amused smirk. He frowned in confusion. “Or maybe that’s TMI for you right now. My Skype meeting should be over by 11:00, then your watch is ended.” She just caught the flit of Will’s eyelids as she straightened. “Love?”

“Hmm?”

“Shower or nap?”

“What?”

Sarah could not mask the fond smirk and snapped her fingers. “Shower or nap? Now.”

“Shower,” Will blurted.

“Alright. I’m sure you’ll catch her if she wakes up. Shower. Clothes. Coffee.”

His lips quirked in a grin. “Lots of coffee,” Will agreed. “I got this. Might be in bed at five tonight, but I’m good. Get to your meeting.”

“My brave Ranger,” Sarah purred, petting his neck and giving one more kiss before turning and heading downstairs.

~*~

After a shower, and getting to put on civvies in the form of jeans and a t-shirt, Will felt mostly human. The baby was sitting up and seemed content in her tiny crib. Daddy gathered her up and brought her downstairs to get some food into her and him both.

Baby and father shared some scrambled eggs, but only Lennox got the coffee. Achievement unlocked: Functional Human. 

Annabelle was content to chase around a few cheerios while Daddy took care of the dishes and cleanup. By that time, Will was fairly sure that it was time for another dose of her medication. After he read, reread, and valiantly resisted interrupting Sarah to double check the dosage instructions on Annabelle’s prescription bottle, he wrangled administering the next dosage to his daughter. It was supposed to be berry flavored and easier to get children to take. Even so, getting it into her was a struggle.

They were not really friends after that.

With a sigh, Will decided that a change of scenery was in order to keep the peace. He lifted Anna and settled her little wriggling self against his shoulder, adding a gentle bounce to his step as he went out onto the porch to find Ironhide.

The TopKick’s lights flashed quickly when Lennox cleared the door, then Ironhide transformed and met his charges a few yards from the front steps. “Improved, Bitlet?” he asked rhetorically, dropping to a knee and offering Annabelle a blunt fingertip.

Will guided his little girl to face the mech. She whined one last time and then looked intently at Ironhide’s optics. He rumbled his engine and made a low purr, to which Anna replied with a more contented burble.

“I’m tired, but okay. Thanks, mech,” Will groused with a smirk.

Ironhide shutter-blinked his optics and snorted. “You’ve gone with less and worse sleep.”

“Yes, and I know.” He bounced the baby lightly. “Now about that utter betrayal last night?”

“Sarah seemed to enjoy the information,” Ironhide chuckled.

“Hey, Deep Throat, didn’t have to call me out like that,” Will grumbled, his face and ears suddenly warm.

Ironhide tipped his helm, the human’s blush was very telling. “What exactly?”

Annabelle yawned, warm and fed and sleepy. Will took his opportunity and made an escape, turning to settle her in the little screened playpen on the porch. He stood a little longer than necessary, watching the baby drowse before she settled into calm sleep.

When Lennox looked up, Ironhide was in the same position, waiting with that infinite, damnable patience. Will huffed and returned to the mech’s shadow. “The singing? I guess. Like singing in the shower, it’s not meant for an audience.”

Ironhide hummed, mostly apology but with sliver of confusion. “Your offspring is an audience.”

“Yeah, but she doesn’t remember! …Or understand the words.”

“According to Sarah’s response, the quality was acceptable. She enjoyed your voice, despite the content.”

“I… whut?” Will gaped, then hung his head and scrubbed over his face. “Alright, alright fine. So, I can carry a tune in a bucket.”

His engine thrummed in amusement. “Both she and Annabelle would like to hear more.”

“I need some new material.”

“I am sure your internet has options,” Ironhide suggested, optics glimmering earnestly.

Will scowled, seeing the tease beneath the surface. His expression shifted, turning the tables and a curious look at his Guardian. “What about you?”

Helm tilting, Ironhide made a confused chirrup.

Sighing, Lennox spelled it out. “When I was a baby, my mother had to beat “Battle Hymn of the Republic” on my back after nursing."

Blue optics flashed in surprise. “Why did she-”

Lennox snorted, waving his hand. “No, to get me to burp. Apparently, I couldn’t figure it out.” He brushed a knuckle against his nose and composed himself. “But babies like that sort of repetition. Walking tempo, the vibration of voices. Lullabies mimic that from the womb, and help with bonding. So do marching cadences, bonding, unit cohesion and keeping a unit in sync as we move. Those are for reasons. You got anything like that?”

“Our numbers are generated by the Allspark, not as offspring,” Ironhide rumbled, choosing to only answer a superfluous tangent, not even part of the question.

“Alright, you cagey bastard,” Will groused, rolling his eyes. “Point blank, you have songs?”

Ironhide’s lip plates pulled in a bit of a smirk. “No lullabies.” The human actually kicked plating with a bit of intent. ‘Hide chuckled. “We don't need marching cadence, keeping step is not an issue as our kind can either roll or fly.”

“So that's not a thing,” Will agreed.

“Though, duties requiring disparate workers apply force in time used broadcast clicks to set pace. Some starting chanting, then singing to it.”

A wide grin spread across Will’s expression. “Sea shanties. You had fucking sea shanties.” 

“Working coordination,” Ironhide corrected but then reconsidered. His optics flickered momentary, indicating of an internet dive. “Shanties,” he grudgingly agreed, rolling shoulder plating in a shrug. “Eventually they broadcast the songs instead of the metronomes.”

“Do you remember any?”

The flat look and little puff of smoke from Ironhide’s vents said enough.

“Ok, dumb.” Will crossed his arms and moved closer to where Ironhide knelt. He leaned his shoulder on the mech’s shin. “So?”

“Very old archives,” Ironhide rumbled. Helm tipped, he paused and looked at his charge. He flexed chest plating. A soft tap with fingertips resonated as a deep bass beat, over which he warbled and creaked the words.

Will stared. Cybertronian language was absolutely incomprehensible to him, but there was a familiarity to the echoing beat played on the mech’s very frame. Trills, clicks and static that rose or fell, electronic whalesong and tittering cybernetic birds built a melody. It took about a minute for him to hear a cycle. Lyrics, a chorus, something that repeated, and all in time with the boom of living armor.

Ironhide’s optics deepened to a darker blue as he watched Will’s expression morph into recognition and something delighted. The mech sang through a complete tune. He ended on the final verse before it would have cycled back to the beginning, his engine growling softly.

“That,” Will bounced lightly on the balls of his feet. “That was awesome.”

The mech snorted with a quirk of his lip plates, but his optics flickered warmly. 

“What did it mean?”

“I can translate directly,” ‘Hide grunted. “But the beat, any rhyming would be better by Jazz.”

Lennox scoffed. “Fuck that, bet we could manage something. Baby’s asleep and Sarah’s still working. I can’t nap until I’m relieved.”

‘Hide gave a dubious glance, but settled to sit on the ground. A quick gesture offered Will to climb and sit on thigh plating, which the human did. “I could wake you if your offspring required attention,” he growled.

“Nah,” Will said, “This will keep me entertained enough. So come on, what’s it mean?”

“There is some black humor,” Ironhide smirked. “Maybe not a match to your Airborne cadence, but…”

A grunt from Will and he waved his hand in a rude gesture. “Just tell me.”

~*~

Sarah stretched and ensured that her notes were saved. Textbook, topic, title, required diagrams and illustrations, timeline for initial drafts and end dates were all in her contract folder. She signed out of the meeting software and marked her status as ‘Away.’ One last tidy of her workspace and she left the office to find her husband and child.

Though she expected Will and Anna to be in the living room, it was empty. At least she saw them out with Ironhide through the window before making a further fruitless search of the house. Her Ranger was sitting on Ironhide’s thigh with Anna in his lap, and she could hear snatches of sound even from inside.

She went out of the porch and leaned on the rail, watching them. Annabelle seemed much happier, cradled in Daddy’s lap while he half chanted, half sang something along with Ironhide.

Stir the oil, ‘til pure and smooth-

-and keep the forges burning,

Frag the rust, our cogs still move

-and keep the smelters churning.

Sarah’s near-silent laugh was still enough to attract Ironhide’s attention. The mech lifted his helm, bright optics looking to her. 

Will noticed the shift and twisted around. “Sar~ah?”

She loved the telling little voice crack he still had when stressed or embarrassed. “Hi, love. Meeting finished a few minutes early.” Sarah stepped down the stairs and crossed the short distance to her family. “Having fun?”

Ironhide hummed an affirmative, holding a fingertip where Anna could pat on it with unbridled exuberance. “Call it cultural exchange.” He offered his other hand to lift Sarah to join her mate and progeny.

Sarah patted the mech’s wrist in thanks and settled beside Will. “So what have you been up to?” she teased.

“Uh,” Lennox floundered, looking up to optics as if Ironhide would step in and explain. But no, the engine beside them revved in a laugh, and Will huffed melodramatically. They had spent the morning translating lyrics, then working through finding syllables and rhymes to make the song work in English. The only real pause was when Anna woke and Daddy went to cart her back and join their Guardian. “Roped ‘Hide into telling stories and teaching songs.”

Anna’s happy squeal had Sarah grin and pet through little blond curls. The little girl seemed more content, less flushed and no bothering at her ears in the last few minutes. “Alright,” Sarah hummed. “Care to share?”

“Well, like Towers. Not concrete… concrystal.” Will gestured excitedly as Sarah grinned. She knew he had gone beyond tired to punchy and let him babble. “It’s grown to shape. Seeded and tended and needs to be moved and rotated in unison. And they had songs to keep everyone in time, Ironhide was teaching me one. And, their windows aren’t glass. A transparent titanium alloy, needs the same for folding and forging.”

“Transparent aluminum?” Sarah asked with a smirk, her husband so rarely gushed information.

“There be whales here?” Lennox asked, head tipped to Sarah’s.

“Space whales?” she asked, eyebrows raised at her dork of a husband. Will chuckled and looked to Ironhide with his expression begging for confirmation.

“Someday,” Ironhide rumbled confidently, “your species will find out.”

Lennox pointed theatrically up at the mech. “That is _not_ a No.”

Ironhide purred, optics glimmering at his charges, one flickered in a wink. 

Sarah brushed her lips against Will’s cheek. “Teach me,” she whispered, fond and intimate.

“Huh?”

“Teach me. A song from you two is going to be a favorite,” Sarah gestured at Annabelle as if the request was purely altruistic. Not that she wanted to hear her husband sing.

That blush was back around Lennox’s ears, Ironhide noted. He rumbled fondly; spark warmed by the willingness of this alien little social unit to include him. The infant made a small noise and patted with more enthusiasm at his fingerpad. 

“Please?” Sarah both interpreted her daughter’s request and added her own. 

“Yes. Yes, you can learn.” Will wrapped an arm around Sarah and brushed a kiss to her cheek, adjusting his hold on Anna to let the little girl grasp Mommy’s fingers with her other hand. Who was Will to say no to his family?

‘Hide bowed his helm and resumed the drumming on his chest plates. After a brief pause to work through his stage fright, Lennox took a deep breath and sang the next verse. His voice blended with Ironhide’s deeper tones, and Sarah snuggled up beside him to listen.

Here Will was, cradled by Ironhide, with both Ladies in his arms. And this was just where he would always want to be.

**Author's Note:**

> I've been an "essential" worker in a medical lab during the pandemic and have truly appreciated the mental breaks of finding new fanfic and rereading old favorites. The first chunk of this story had been sitting written for a very, very, very.... long time, and the bug finally bit to finish it up and try to share it. It might eventually be rolled into a big ol' Lennox opus fic. But right now, hopefully someone gets to enjoy an escape with this story.
> 
> Stay sane. Stay safe. Stay well, lovelies.


End file.
